HPD Chief Art Acevedo is urging the public to let the internal investigation that HPD is conducting “take its proper course and proceed to conclusion.”

At least one of the narcotics officers involved in a search warrant that ended up in a shootout last week has been relieved of duty, the Houston Police Officers’ Union said Thursday. The officer is not one of five that were wounded in the raid.

The HPOU said in a statement the relief of duty is “due to ongoing questions that cannot be answered until the case agent is interviewed.”

The police union added that HPD “made the decision to relieve the officer of duty while a thorough investigation continues.” According to union officials, nearly all officers who are relieved of duty return to work after an investigation is completed.

HPD Chief Art Acevedo also released a statement and said there is a lot of “speculation” about the circumstances of the shootout and urged the public to let the internal investigation that HPD is conducting “take its proper course and proceed to conclusion.” The statement said the department will report its findings at the conclusion of the investigation, rather than releasing information “piecemeal” as the case proceeds.

Social media posts have fueled speculation about the circumstances surrounding the raid and subsequent shootout. Union officials tried to dispel those rumors, stating officers were not on the wrong street. The search warrant that led to the raid showed officers had reason to believe large quantities of heroin and guns were inside the house.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in a statement prosecutors with the Civil Rights Division are working with HPD “to look at every aspect of this incident.” The policy of the DA’s office dictates that every shooting by a police officer is presented to a grand jury to determine if any criminal charges are warranted.

EDITOR’s NOTE: The original version of this story erroneously reported the HPD officer who was relieved of duty is one of four that were wounded by gunfire during the raid. This story has been corrected.

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Alvaro ‘Al’ Ortiz

General Assignment Reporter

Alvaro 'Al' Ortiz is originally from Spain. He worked for several years in his home country and gained experience in all platforms of journalism, from wire services to print, as well as broadcast news and digital reporting. In 2001, Al came to the United States to pursue a Master's degree...